


New Beginnings

by JoMouse



Series: Imagine Sterek Events [2]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - No Hale Fire (Teen Wolf), Angst, Don't copy to another site, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, Imagine-Sterek Roaring 20's Event, M/M, New Year's Eve, New Year's Eve and New Beginnings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-01
Packaged: 2021-04-21 09:00:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,486
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22059535
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JoMouse/pseuds/JoMouse
Summary: For two years, FanFic writer Stiles has been communicating with FanArtist Alpha. He just found out Alpha is going to be near Beacon Hills for New Year's Eve and Alpha invites him to meet in person for the first time.Stiles is excited to finally meet the man who had come to mean a lot to him without ever seeing his face or learning his name. Why then can't Stiles forget about his ex-boyfriend?Written forImagine Sterek'sRoaring 20's event.
Relationships: Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski
Series: Imagine Sterek Events [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1586374
Comments: 28
Kudos: 310





	New Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> Happy New Year!
> 
> I was so scared when I started writing for the Sterek fandom. My first Sterek fic, written back in 2017, didn't seem to go over very well so when I decided to attempt to write more this past year, I wasn't just scared, I was terrified. I am happy that my fears were unwarranted and you have all been lovely and wonderful to me through all of the fics I published in 2019 (36 fics!). So, thank you.
> 
> Here is my first Sterek fic of 2020 and hopefully it will be just the first of many!
> 
> May your new year and decade be full of love and life and all of your dreams coming true!
> 
> Big thanks to [Marie](http://quietzap.tumblr.com) and Jenn for being awesome betas, cheerleaders and friends. Without them, I'd never get anything finished or in any shape to be published.
> 
> The idea for this story came from [this post](https://josjournal.tumblr.com/post/178914342541/au-ideas#disqus_thread) on tumblr. The actual prompt reads: 11: You're my favourite fanartist and you did fanart of my fic. So I wrote you a fic in return and now you've done fanart for that. You like all my selfies and comment on all my text posts and I do the same to you, and erm, you just posted that you're going to be in my city? Maybe we could meet up?
> 
> Enjoy!!!!!
> 
> xx-Joey

Stiles stared at the top of the Google document waiting for the greyed out “Saving…” to change to “All changes saved in Drive,” giving a sigh of relief. Glancing at the clock, he saw that he had just enough time to get changed and ready to go. He loved New Year’s Eve but every year, he stressed himself out to finish one short fic to post just after midnight and this year had been the closest call yet. 

He hurried to copy and paste the text into Archive of their Own and save the draft so he could publish it from his phone, since for the first time in years he would be going out on New Year’s Eve. It felt strange to shut down his computer and start getting dressed to go out when the last time he’d done it had been in high school when he’d gone to a party with his boyfriend at the time. It had been a great night that ended with an amazing kiss, but the relationship had ended shortly after when Derek’s family had been transferred and they’d moved across the country to New York. They’d tried a long distance relationship, but it just hadn’t worked.

They’d lost touch and sometimes Stiles would stalk his Facebook but it was rarely updated and he just never quite had the guts to send a friend request, afraid of being rejected. He wasn’t too proud to say he still carried a torch for the man, even if he tried to deny it, his father and best friend wouldn’t let him. 

Shaking his head, he pushed his chair away from his desk, forcing Derek from his mind as he focused on getting ready for the party. He was buttoning up his black shirt when there was a chime from his computer and he grinned, recognizing the tumblr message notification. Grabbing his purple bow tie off the end of his bed, he strode over and tapped on the icon with the bubble next to it.

_ “Are you ready?” _

With one hand, he managed to type back,  _ “Nearly. Are you sure you really want to do this?” _

The only response was a gif of a nodding and smiling Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson. Shaking out his fingers and taking a deep breath, he typed out his phone number, adding “ _ Just in case _ ” at the end. He kind of expected to get a text so he’d have the other’s number but he just got a thumbs up emoji in the message window.

Narrowing his eyes, he shrugged. It had been a risk to give out his number but he was already meeting up with the other person in an hour at the party so giving out his number was a small thing. He grinned when his phone rang with a Facetime request from his best friend who was currently in the Bahamas with his mom.

“You suck!” Scott said when Stiles picked up. “You are missing an amazing trip!”

“Yeah, well, I still have to pay for that last semester of college, buddy boy,” Stiles said, as he slipped the bow tie around his neck. He set his phone on his dresser so Scott could still see him as he leaned into the mirror to watch himself tie the tie, tongue gripped between his teeth in concentration. “Plus you know I’m meeting Alpha tonight.”

“Still don’t know his real name?” Scott asked, this face growing serious and Stiles subtly knocked the phone so his friend could only see the ceiling and he could ignore his concern.

“He doesn’t know mine either,” Stiles pointed out. 

They’d met online two years earlier when Alpha had submitted a fan art to Stiles for one of the stories he had written; it had been a fanfic for a non-canon couple on a popular teen supernatural-themed show and the way Alpha had drawn the image was exactly how Stiles had pictured the scene in his head. After a few days of scrolling through Alpha’s blog, he’d gotten a pretty good feel for what kinds of fics the other liked and threw a little bit of everything into a quick fic, sending it in return to Alpha who had thanked him by drawing a picture for  _ that _ fic.

They’d started chatting after that and hit it off without sharing too many revealing details about each other. Alpha knew him as MischiefManaged and called him M&M for short. He knew Alpha had just graduated from college in New York and was currently looking for a job to put his criminology degree to good use. He knew Stiles had one semester left of school in California before he would finish with his double major in computer sciences and creative writing. He already had a job lined up setting up and running a cybercrimes department where his dad was Sheriff.

He and Alpha would spend hours talking true crime and he’d even helped Stiles develop an AU for the characters involving a serial killer and then created the most amazing artwork to go along with it. The two of them had become fairly well known on tumblr and AO3 as MischiefAlpha and got requests for works; they’d even discussed setting up a joint tumblr account but hadn’t actually gotten around to doing it yet.

A few weeks ago, Alpha had messaged Stiles that he was going to be in California for the New Year; his family had moved there and he’d be spending the holidays with them. When Stiles had ventured to ask where, he’d nearly fallen off his chair when the response had been a small town less than ten miles from Beacon Hills. His fingers had typed up an offer to meet up before he could stop himself and it had quickly turned into an invite to a New Year's Eve party his family was attending.

He'd talked about the meet-up with his father, giving him the invitation for the party and surprisingly after a few moments on the computer at work, his father had given his blessing but encouraged his son to keep his cell phone on him and send him any personal information he could gather about Alpha. Stiles was still reeling by the uncharacteristic acceptance of his father, but he would take the opportunity when he could.

The only person that wasn't super supportive was Scott and Stiles was sure if he was home he'd be chaining Stiles to his radiator to keep him from going. Luckily, Scott was on a cruise in the Caribbean with his mother for the New Year. "Just relax, Scotty-boy. If my dad doesn't have a problem with it, why should you?"

"Still don't know why Papa Stilinski is okay with this," Scott grumbled.

Done with his bow tie, Stiles picked his phone back up and frowned at Scott. "I'll message you the address of the party and if you don't hear from me within an hour of midnight, you can send out the cops. You know my father would lead the charge."

Scott grumbled some more, but eventually, a smile broke out across his face. "How are you going to know him? Did he send you a pic?"

"Nope. He knows I'm wearing a purple bow tie and he's supposed to be wearing a red striped tie and black-framed glasses," Stiles explained. 

"So he's a nerd," Scott teased.

"He is," Stiles agreed, "and I'm really excited to meet him." Their friendship had grown and he found himself thinking about Alpha in ways he hadn't thought about anyone since Derek, despite having no idea what he looked like. Alpha listened to him and supported him when he felt like he had no one else to turn to. When he was stressed over an exam, Alpha had sent him silly little drawings of a wolf dancing around with a fox. Printouts of the drawings had a place of honor on the corkboard in his apartment at school.

"Well, just have fun," Scott told him, turning even more serious. "I like the way you smile when you talk about him and I hope it turns out for the way you are hoping because I don't think I could handle seeing you as upset as you were when Derek left."

The familiar hitch in his heart at the memory dampened his excitement slightly, but he refused to let it last. He opened his mouth to say something else to Scott when he heard his mom call him in the background. "Gotta go, man," Scott told him. "We have the Captain's dinner tonight."

"I've got to get going, too," Stiles said, running a hand through his hair and checking his reflection one last time. "Have fun!"

"You, too," Scott told him. "I love you, man."

"Love you, too, bro." The call disconnected and Stiles texted his father to let him know he was leaving before pocketing it and grabbing his keys.

The drive was an easy one and Stiles smiled at the people in the cars around him, noting some were dressed up and others had backseats full of grocery bags. He wondered what kind of food was going to be at the party. Alpha hadn’t told him who was hosting the party, but that he should just tell the people at the gate that he was a guest and give his name. When he pointed out Alpha didn’t know his name, he just said to tell them it was “M&M, friend of Alpha” and they would understand. That made him wonder if it was a family party.

The GPS told him to take a right and he did, gaping at the guard house in front of him. A man dressed in a warm jacket marked with a security company on it, leaned out the door and smiled at Stiles. “Good evening. Who are you here to see?”

“Um. M&M, friend of Alpha?” he said, hesitating realizing just how ridiculous the phrase was and hoping that this wasn’t some elaborate joke and he was going to get himself arrested; he wasn’t sure how he would explain that to his father. He also wasn’t sure how he would keep his father from hunting Alpha down and shooting him if it was some elaborate prank.

The guard’s smile grew. Without even checking the list, the man reached into the guard house to push a button, raising the bar in front of the car. “To get to the house, take a right and follow the street all the way to the end. There are silver and black balloons on the mailbox. You can’t miss it.”

“Thank you,” Stiles told him, grateful for the directions even though he already had the address in his GPS. “Have a Happy New Year.”

“You as well,” the man said and actually tipped his hat to Stiles, making him laugh.

He drove slowly through the neighborhood admiring the Christmas lights that were still up on the definitely-not-small homes. He wondered if any of the homeowners did their own decorating or if everything was done by hired companies. He started wondering if he should offer his services for extra cash; he always enjoyed decorating his dad’s house. The further up the road he went, the further apart the houses got. It seemed the greater the distance between them, the larger they got as well. 

He’d just passed one he swore was used on a television show he’d seen once when his eyes fell on the silver and black balloons tied to a mailbox. He started to turn into the driveway when he was waved down by a young man in a black jackets with the name of a valet service on the back. “Good evening, sir. Are you here for the party?” Stiles nodded. “Name?”

“Um..er...M&M, friend of Alpha?”

“Was that a question?” the guy asked before breaking into laughter at the panicked look on Stiles’ face. “Kidding. Gotta admit we were all curious to see what you looked like, some were taking bets that you were actually Eminem.”

“Sorry to disappoint,” he said, handing over the keys to his Jeep. “Careful with Roscoe, he’s finicky.”

“He’s gorgeous,” the guy argued. “My mom had one when I was a kid. Learned to drive in it. Miss that thing.”

“Glad he’s in good hands,” Stiles said, taking the ticket. “I just head up the driveway?”

“Nah, wait on that bench for your ride,” the guy told him. “Otherwise you’ll be walking for awhile. It’s a long driveway.”

Settling on the bench, he pulled his phone out, checking the tumblr app to see if there were any messages from Alpha, but it was still left at his phone number. Sighing, he sent a text to his father to let him know he’d arrived and took a photo of the mailbox. He didn’t expect a response, knowing that New Year’s Eve was a busy night for the Sheriff’s Department. 

He was scrolling through Instagram when he heard jingle bells. Looking up, he gaped at the horses coming down the driveway, pulling a wagon behind them. “There’s your ride,” called out the valet who had returned from parking Stiles’ Jeep god knows where. 

Rising, he waited until the wagon stopped in front of him. “M&M?” the driver asked and Stiles nodded. “Climb on. There’s something for you on the front seat.”

Settling into the seat, he picked up the flat package with a big red bow and unwrapped it to reveal a frame. Flipping it over, he gasped at the original artwork of the first drawing Alpha had done for him way back when. He ran his fingers over the glass, the colors even more alive than in the original scan. He’d always suspected Alpha worked on paper and then scanned, but this confirmed it. He worried where he would keep it for the night, but the driver spoke up.

“There’s a coat check when you go inside. They’ll be more than happy to hold the gift,” he said. “How was your drive?”

“Not bad,” Stiles responded, looking around as they continued down the street before starting up a driveway. He thought the valet had been exaggerating but after five minutes he finally caught a glimpse of the house and gasped. 

“Nice, yeah?”

“Beautiful,” Stiles said. The white of the house should have been blinding, but it blended into the backdrop of trees beautifully, like it had grown there not been built. An actual red carpet led from the front door where a doorman stood down the stairs to the driveway where the wagon came to a stop. “Thank you,” he said to the driver who gave him a wave before heading down the other side of what must have been a circle drive.

“Good evening, sir,” the doorman said, pulling open the door to reveal the warmest entry to a home he’d ever seen. 

He’d been expecting white marble, a house you only saw in movies where reclusive millionaires planned terrible demises for the people around them. Instead, hardwood floors and plush rugs greeted him. The sound of laughter carried through the house, backed by music. 

Stepping inside, he was greeted by a girl with curly blonde hair. “Take your coat?” He checked his coat and the frame, nervously running his hands over his shirt and fiddling with his bow tie. “You look fine,” the girl assured him.

“Thank you.” He couldn’t believe how nice everyone was or how nervous he was getting thinking about meeting Alpha. Following the sound of laughter, he stepped into a room filled with people, one wall lined with a buffet table. A bar stood at the back with three bartenders moving behind it, flipping bottles like in that old Tom Cruise movie.

He looked around the room, trying to find someone in black glasses with a red striped tie and cursing himself for being too chicken to exchange photos or insist on a phone number in return. Pulling his phone out, he thought he’d try messaging Alpha on tumblr but was stopped when he heard someone call his name in a surprised tone.

Looking up, all his breath left him in a rush. Standing not five feet away from him, dressed head to toe in black, button-up open at his neck showing off a hint of chest hair was Derek Hale. He looked as good as he remembered. Hell, he looked better with that carefully trimmed beard and the hesitant smile on his face just barely revealing the bunny teeth Stiles had first noticed about him.

“D...D-erek!” he said, flinching when people looked over at him, but it didn’t matter because a moment later they were hugging and laughing. Something in the breast pocket of Derek’s jacket dug into his shoulder so he stepped back, wiping at the tears stinging his eyes and rubbing at the hurt on his shoulder. “How are you here?”

He shrugged and grabbed a couple of glasses of champagne from a passing waiter and handed one to Stiles. “What are you doing here?”

He opened his mouth to answer, snapping it shut as the emotions inside of him went to battle. He was so happy to see Derek, his heart leaping and begging for more contact, to return to the comfort he’d missed for so many years, but he was there to meet Alpha who he admitted to having fallen just a bit in love with despite knowing next to nothing about him. 

Derek’s smile faded. “You’re here to meet someone.” It wasn’t a question.

“Yeah,” Stiles admitted, shoving his hands into his pocket and shuffling his feet, suddenly finding it difficult to meet Derek’s eyes. “I met him online.”

“That’s great,” Derek said and Stiles looked up to see a genuine smile on his face. “I’m glad you’re happy.” He looked around the room. “So where is the lucky guy?”

“I don’t know actually,” Stiles admitted. “He’s supposed to be wearing a red striped tie and black glasses.” For the first time, he was questioning his own sanity when Derek turned to him with raised eyebrows. “Yeah, I know. Stupid Stiles, but I know he’s here. He gave me a gift in the wagon on the way here.”

“Well, I’ll help you find him. I mean, if you don’t mind the company?” He gestured to the buffet table. “I was just about to grab something to eat.”

“That sounds great,” Stiles agreed. It would definitely be easier to have someone with him as he tried to find Alpha, but at the same time he really just wanted to spend time with Derek.

They talked as they made their way through the line, catching up on the years they’d missed and teasing like they had just seen each other the day before. By the time their plates were full and they’d snagged a couple of chairs along the wall of the room, their knees brushing as they talked, it was like no time had passed between them and Stiles had to remind himself that he couldn’t lick off the bit of cocktail sauce stuck in Derek’s beard.

When they were done eating, Stiles began to give up hope on Alpha. He wondered if maybe the other man had seen him talking to Derek and left. Apologizing to Derek, he pulled his phone out to check for a text or even a tumblr message, but there was nothing. Frowning, he sent off a quick, “Where are you?” message and put his phone away.

“Everything alright?” Derek asked when he returned from setting their plates on a table near where they were seated and handing over a beer. “Hope this brand is alright.”

“It’s great.” He took a drink as Derek settled back into the chair. “I was checking to see if the guy I’m meeting had messaged or anything and he hadn’t. Maybe he saw me and took off.” He’d whispered the last part but of course, Derek had heard it and reached over to grab Stiles’ hand.

“Hey. Don’t talk like that. If he did, then he’s an idiot,” Derek said. “You’re amazing, always have been.”

Stiles wiped at his nose, discovering all the tears he’d shed that night had caused it to run. “Shit, I’m a mess.” He looked around for a napkin and cursed as he pushed himself to stand to get one.

“Hold on,” Derek said, reaching into the breast pocket of his jacket and pulling out a handkerchief. “Mom insists on them when I’m dressed up.” He handed it to Stiles who took it gratefully. “You can keep it.”

“Thanks.” 

“I missed you,” Derek said, his voice fond and startling Stiles, pulling his attention away from his mess of a face.

He started to say it back when something caught his eye. Derek’s suit jacket hadn’t fallen closed again and he could see the inner pocket he’d pulled the handkerchief from, red and black fabric and black plastic sticking out of it. “What the-” He reached out and grabbed the fabric, pulling it out to reveal a red and black striped tie. The movement also dislodged a pair of black-framed glasses.

Derek’s sigh was immense and his entire body folded in on itself as Stiles gaped and waved the tie around. “Derek, what the hell?  _ You’re _ Alpha?”

“Stiles-”

“No. It’s a yes or no question - are you Alpha?”

“Yes,” Derek said. “But-”

“F*ck you, Derek,” Stiles said and rose to his feet, hurrying from the room. He raced past the coat check and out the door, disappointed not to see the wagon waiting. 

Wrapping his arms around himself, he started walking down the driveway. He got halfway when he realized his claim check for the valet was in his coat. Cursing, he turned back around and froze when he saw Derek heading towards him carrying his coat and the frame. Turning on his heel, he kept heading down the driveway. If Derek wanted to follow him, he could carry his things. He didn’t have to talk to him.

He heard Derek’s steps quicken and then saw him catch up out of the corner of his eye. He fell into step next to him but didn’t say anything, so Stiles just continued his trek. He had just spotted the end of the driveway when he couldn’t hold it in anymore. “How long have you known?” he demanded, whirling around to shout at Derek.

Derek continued walking for a few steps before realizing Stiles had stopped and then he turned back to look at him, his face ashen and a couple of tear tracks on his cheeks. “Know what?”

“How long have you known I was MischiefManaged?” Stiles demanded. “How long have you been playing me for a fool! Pretending we were strangers!”

“This afternoon when you gave me your phone number,” Derek said and Stiles scoffed. “I swear. I think a part of me always wanted you to be M&M, wanted you to still want me in your life, but it wasn’t until you gave me your number. It sounded familiar and when I put it into my phone and went to text you, it brought up the thread-”

“What? How? It’s been years!”

“I still have the same SIM card and phone number,” Derek told him. “And I couldn’t bring myself to delete your texts.” Another scoff and Derek dug his phone out and handed it to him.

Stiles stared down at the screen and the first thing he saw was the last thing he’d said to Derek when they’d broken up:  _ I know it’s the right thing to do, but I don’t know how I’ll ever stop loving you. _ Derek hadn’t responded and all of the pain he’d felt back then clenched around his heart and he dropped the phone.

He stood frozen his hand over his mouth. Derek's phone looked just like his old one that he kept hidden in a drawer. When he was feeling especially masochistic, he would pull it out, charge it up and read back over the texts. He'd always end up in a ball under his blanket. The hardest thing he'd done, aside from breaking up with Derek, was leaving the phone home when he'd gone away to school.

The only thing that got him through was talking to Alpha. He thought over Derek saying he'd wanted MischiefManaged to be him and he had to admit to a small part of him wanting Alpha to be Derek. Running a hand over his face, he tried to come up with words but they were lost somewhere in the atmosphere. "Why didn't you just tell me when you realized?"

Derek bent down to pick up his phone checking it over and putting it into his jacket pocket before handing Stiles his own jacket. "I was afraid you wouldn't come to the party."

"And when I got here? Why did you hide the tie and glasses?" He slipped into his jacket, huddling into the warmth and burying his nose in the collar, surprised how it already captured Derek's cologne.

The tips of Derek's ears turned pink and Stiles grinned; he'd missed seeing that, teasing Derek about it, but he kept that to himself when Derek began to speak. "I wasn't finished getting ready and I wanted to be at the door when you got here. I was just about to put my tie on when I saw you." Stiles shook his head watching him. "Then it was too late. I was going to tell you."

"When?"

"I don't know," Derek admitted. "I was just so happy to see you again and it seemed like you were happy to see me, too."

"I am," Stiles responded, taking a step back when Derek stepped forward. "Why didn't you just tell me? Just say, 'Hey, funny story...'"

"Funny stories were always your thing," Derek said. "That first one I drew the picture for... the scene in the woods when Dylan got drunk and Tyler carried him home. Was that..." he trailed off and crossed his arms over his chest with a huff.

"Yeah. Loosely based on that night at Jackson's party when you had to take me home." Stiles ran his hands through his hair. "They say write what you know."

"The familiarity is what called to me to draw the picture," Derek explained. "While I drew it, I felt closer to you. I almost called you when I finished it, but your Facebook status said you were seeing someone."

"You stalked my Facebook!" Stiles accused.

"Like you haven't stalked mine?" Derek's eyebrows raised and Stiles flushed. "You forget that I know you."

"You  _ knew  _ me," Stiles reminded as he started to walk again, digging out the valet ticket from his pocket.

Derek reached out and grasped his bicep loosely, turning Stiles to face him. "No, I  _ know  _ you. I know that you still love to write and that your biggest dream is to publish a novel before you're twenty-five. I know that you worry about your father's health constantly and you learned to cook so that he would eat better when you're home from school." Stiles gaped at him, the words he'd shared with Alpha coming from Derek's lips, shooting down any argument that came to his mind as to why he should run away and change his phone number. "I know that when you get nervous, you chew your lip." Derek's thumb came up to run over his lower lip, releasing it from his teeth. Derek leaned in to press their foreheads together. "I know that I never stopped loving you."

"Asshole," Stiles said, moving his hands to grip the front of Derek's shirt and shaking him slightly, never losing the contact between their foreheads. "Couldn't you have stopped being perfect at some point."

"I let you walk away, so I can't ever be considered perfect," Derek said, brushing the tip of his nose against Stiles'.

Fireworks exploding in the sky startled them apart and Stiles pulled his phone out to look at it. "It's the new year," he said.

"Happy New Year," Derek responded, brushing a chaste kiss across Stiles' lips. "Want to come back inside? Say hi to my parents?"

"Your parents are here?" Stiles asked, releasing Derek's shirt and tangling his fingers with Derek, taking the frame when it was handed to him.

"It's their house," Derek said, smirking.

"What? You did say they moved back." He knocked the frame gently against his forehead. 

"We all did," Derek told him. "I'm living here until I get a job and find my own place."

"You're staying here?" 

"As long as my job interview on Friday goes well," Derek told him, grinning. "Think the Sheriff of Beacon Hills would be willing to hire me?"

"My  _ dad _ is interviewing you?" Stiles pulled his phone out and hit number two on his speed dial, he'd never admit to Derek that he was still number one.

_ "Happy New Year, kiddo," _ Stiles' father answered.

"Don't you 'kiddo' me, Sheriff Stilinski," Stiles snarled. "Did you know?"

The chuckle from the other end of the phone told him everything that his father wasn't saying. "I wouldn't be a very good Sheriff if I couldn't put two and two together. Nice to know I still have it."

"Why didn't you tell me Derek was coming back? That he was the one I was meeting tonight?" Stiles asked, his voice pleading and Derek stopped walking, pulling him into his arms, one hand coming up to cup his face, brows furrowed in concern.

"Because I couldn't know for sure. I don't have my cyber crimes unit up and running to investigate," he teased. "Plus, I thought you would be happy that the two great loves of your life were the same person."

Derek's eyebrows shot up, telling Stiles that he'd heard his father. "I'm not done with you," Stiles said.

"Bring Derek by for dinner tomorrow...or I guess tonight."

Derek nodded enthusiastically and Stiles rolled his eyes. "Will do, dad. Talk to you later." He tried to make it sound like a threat but his father just laughed before hanging up.

"Great loves of your life?" Derek teased and Stiles shoved him.

"Shut up." 

Stiles tried to pull away and continue up the driveway, but Derek pulled him back into his arms. "Make me." He wiggled his eyebrows at Stiles, grinning when he started to laugh.

"I'm still mad at you," he said through his laughter.

"I know," Derek said. "I don't blame you. I should've told you."

"Not just for tonight. For breaking up with me," Stiles reminded him and he winced.

"I know." His response was quieter as he pulled Stiles tighter against him.

Stiles smirked as his shoulder hit hard plastic. "Mostly, I'm mad because you deprived me of being able to see you in your glasses."

Derek rolled his eyes and reached into his pocket to pull out the frames. "These things? I look like a dork."

Stiles smirked and took them from him, opening them and sliding them onto Derek's face. "I've had Superman, now I want Clark Kent."

"Does that make you Lois Lane?" Derek teased, adjusting the glasses so they sat properly on his nose and then tilting his head so Stiles could admire him.

"Right now, the only person I am is Stiles Stilinski who would really like to get to know you again," he said, smiling when Derek's ears turned pink.

"I'd like that, too," Derek told him. 

The sounds of horses hooves had them pulling apart again and they moved to the edge of the driveway as the wagon came to a stop right in front of them. "Are you two going to spend all night walking up and down the driveway?" Derek's mother asked from her seat next to his father. "Stiles, it is so good to see you again."

"You too, Mrs. Hale," he said, allowing Derek to help him climb into the wagon to sit next to Derek's mother, hugging her and shaking hands with his father who reached into the basket next to him and pulled out four small bottles of champagne and distributed them as the wagon started moving again.

"A toast," he said. "To celebrations." 

Stiles smiled at Derek and brushed his nose against Derek's cheek as Mrs. Hale raised her bottle towards the house as it appeared in front of them. "To coming home."

Stiles raised his bottle and looked at it and the people around him. "To old friends."

Derek raised his bottle and looked right at Stiles, his tone unsure as he toasted, "To new beginnings?"

Stiles nodded and knocked his bottle against Derek's. "To new beginnings," he agreed, foregoing the drink to press his lips to Derek's in what he hoped would be only the first of many more kisses in a continuation of the relationship that should have never ended. 

**Author's Note:**

> Come say 'hi' on tumblr. I'm josjournal.


End file.
